Does Zenitsu Become a Hashira in Demon Slayer?

Zenitsu Agatsuma is a very interesting character; nominally a coward, this Demon Slayer protagonist is actually very powerful while he sleeps. Zenitsu eventually faces his own demons and becomes even stronger over the course of the series. Now, Zenitsu eventually becomes one of the strongest Demon Slayers in the series but does he also become a Hashira in the Demon Slayer?
Although Zenitsu eventually does become as powerful as the Hashira and completes the majority of the training, he never actually becomes a Hashira himself. The reason for that is simple: when Zenitsu actually reached the required level of power, the final fight against Muzan had already begun and when Muzan was defeated, the Demon Slayer Corps simply disbanded as there were no demons to fight against.
The rest of this article is going to provide you with more information about Zenitsu, his powers and his story within the Demon Slayer series. We are going to explain how his powers evolved and when, and how, he reached the power level necessary to become a Hashira. We are also going to expand on the story of why he did not become a Hashira.
Does Zenitsu Agatsuma become a Hashira in Demon Slayer?
Zenitsu Agatsuma is a well-known character from the Demon Slayer series, so we don’t really think that he needs a special introduction. On the other hand, we think it is opportune to tell you a bit about the Hashira, since the anime hasn’t reached a point where the whole group was explained as well as it was explained in the anime.
The Hashira are the nine most powerful swordsmen in the Demon Slayer Corps. As such, they are the soldiers with the highest level of the organization. To become a Hashira, a Slayer must be among the strongest fighters in the Corps. There are two known methods of proving that a Slayer is worthy of becoming a Hashira: the first method is to kill at least 50 demons and the second method is to kill a demon member of the Twelve Kizuki, the 12 strongest demons in the world, who serve directly under the Demon Lord, Muzan Kibutsuji.
The effort required to perform either of these methods requires almost five years of training, although the talented take only two or three years to do so. The Hashira Training is a special training session conducted by the Hashira and undertaken by many lower rank demon slayers. The purpose of this training is to improve the physical abilities and overall health of all Slayers, giving members of the Demon Slayer Corps a better chance of winning the war against the Demons.
Now that we know what the Hashira are and how one becomes a Hashira, we can continue with the topic at hand. So, does Zenitsu become a Hashira? Let us see a list of the known members of the Hashira (since the Hashira end up being disbanded, all the members listed here are former members):
Hashira | Title |
---|---|
Kyojuro Rengoku† | Flame Hashira |
Tengen Uzui | Sound Hashira |
Muichiro Tokito† | Mist Hashira |
Shinobu Kocho† | Insect Hashira |
Mitsuri Kanroji† | Love Hashira |
Obanai Iguro† | Serpent Hashira |
Gyomei Himejima† | Stone Hashira |
Kanae Kocho† | Flower Hashira |
Sakonji Urokodaki | Water Hashira |
Jigoro Kuwajima† | Thunder Hashira |
Shinjuro Rengoku | Flame Hashira |
Giyu Tomioka | Water Hashira |
Sanemi Shinazugawa | Wind Hashira |
As you can see, Zenitsu Agatsuma is not listed among the 13 Hashira that have been identified in the manga. This means, as you might have deduced for yourselves, that he never actually became a Hashira, despite actually going through with the training and later reaching a Hashira-level of power.
We have established that Zenitsu satisfied all the necessary prerequisites to become a Hashira. He did run away from the training in the Hashira Training Arc, but that is because his personality was such that he despised the brutal tutelage, rather than because he was unable to complete the training.
Zenitsu, after the events of the Entertainment District Arc, woke up two days before Tanjiro and reluctantly went on a mission. After the battle against Muzan, Zenitsu would live alongside Tanjiro, Nezuko, and Inosuke. At some point, he would marry Nezuko and start a family that would eventually bear present-day great-grandchildren, Yoshiteru Agatsuma and Toko Agatsuma. He would write the adventures of the Demon Slayer Corps and their final fight against Muzan in a book.
As you can see, Zenitsu story is written out and he does not become the Thunder Hashira in the manga. It is interesting to note that Zenitsu certainly would have succeeded Jigoro as the Thunder Hashira, had the Demon Slayer Corps not disbanded after Muzan Kibutsuji’s defeat. This is, on one hand, a sad belittlement of the feats that all these characters like Tanjiro and Zenitsu did and their overall development but also a good thing, since the reason for them not becoming the new Hashira was that there was actually no need for the Hashra to exist, which is certainly a great thing.
Will Zenitsu become the Thunder Hashira?
Seeing how we know the ending of the Demon Slayer manga, we can give a straightforward answer here – Zenitsu doesn’t become a Hashira in the future. As we’ve said, the Demon Slayer Corps disbanded after Muzan’s defeat simply because there was no one to fight against anymore, and since the Hashira were a group within the Demon Slayer Corps, they also disbanded.
The world was finally free of demons and the future shown in the controversial Chapter 205, the final chapter of the manga, revealed a future where some old faces returned with everyone taking a new role in modern, demon-free society. Whether you liked the ending or not, it is how the author imagined the post-Demon Slayer world and in it, Zenitsu never becomes a Hashira.
Is Zenitsu stronger than a Hashira?
From the beginning, Zenitsu seemed like a talented and skilled Demon Slayer, even though he denies it. Zenitsu’s true strength awakens when he sleeps, for then his nerves, which normally prevent him from summoning his true strength, fail. This makes him smarter, calmer, and more precise in battle. Another proof of his strength is that Zenitsu was able to reach the highest point of Hashira training.
However, his true strength seems to manifest when Zenitsu is able to fight while awake. However, it turned out that his feelings of regret and melancholy were the only things that prevented Zenitsu from killing Kaigaku. Moreover, he was able to keep up with the demon king Muzan Kibutsuji and overpower him. Nevertheless, Zenitsu’s strength at the end of the series was probably as strong as a Hashira’s.